22/07/11

Yesterday, three days after the greatest, most heinous attack on Norway since WWII, I (Cináed) was at the square outside city hall when thousands and thousand of people gathered to mourn, and show the world that we would not be terrorized into fear. I will never forget when the crowd, talking amongst each other, suddenly fell silent in an instant and raised their flowers. From the silence arose a faint sound of voices, then grew as we all joined in, singing our national anthem, humbly and quietly, but strong in numbers. In HRH the Crown Prince’s words: The streets are filled with love. The thought of it still sends shivers down my spine.

This is not a patriotic statement, nor a funeral service. I have not made a careful selection of songs, but instead chose a handful I like. Some are mellow, some are more cheerful. We will be completely honest with you. This episode is neither planned, nor well thought through. But we felt like doing something. Norway is a nation in grief, but we are not a nation in fear. 200 000 people in Oslo, only a few hundred meters from the blast, proved that yesterday.